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<blockquote type="cite"
cite="mid:CAGayqotO+i_tWWUJA==A-5px1t=VEt6Qqpc0ag92nt=B4pCqOQ@mail.gmail.com">
<div dir="ltr">Speaking of emergence, any takes on Phillip Ball's
article in Quanta?
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<div><a
href="https://www.quantamagazine.org/the-new-math-of-how-large-scale-order-emerges-20240610/"
class="moz-txt-link-freetext">https://www.quantamagazine.org/the-new-math-of-how-large-scale-order-emerges-20240610/</a><br>
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<div>I really liked his summary of the current non-explanations
for emergence, but I haven't had time to read further.</div>
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<div>-- rec --</div>
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<p><br>
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<p>As a member of a group here roughly described as "Complexity
Groupies" I am heartened to hear Ball's acknowledgement that
"nobody" really seems to have a good explanation of "what
emergence is". It feels parallel to art and pornography in the
sense of "I don't know what it is, but I know it when I see it".</p>
<p>Terrence Deacon's classifications of dynamic systems seems to
provide some insight or fine structure to emergence, though I
don't know if it is widely interesting or helpful to others. He
applies it primarily to life unto consciousness studies. It seems
particularly apt to Ball's references to "heirarchical" systems
while his references to "leaky" emergence rhymes (a little for me)
with Herb Simon's "partially decomposable" systems.<br>
</p>
<p>As an aside, I don't think I would have recognized Crutchfield...
I haven't seen him in person since about 2009 when he was doing an
art-project with Woody Vasulka and
microphone/speaker/ambient-space dynamical systems at the old bank
building downtown? Or maybe it was a few years earlier...</p>
<p>Deacon's classification system:<br>
</p>
<p style="box-sizing: inherit; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;
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- 4rem); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family:
NonBreakingSpaceOverride, "Hoefler Text", "Noto
Serif", Garamond, "Times New Roman", serif;
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normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none;
widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);
text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style:
initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong
style="box-sizing: inherit; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;
word-break: break-word; overflow-wrap: break-word; font-weight:
700;">homeodynamic:<span> </span></strong>A system is
homeodynamic if its spontaneous, natural or unforced path leads
towards equilibrium. Homeodynamics erases differences (e.g., in
temperature or pressure).</p>
<p style="box-sizing: inherit; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;
word-break: break-word; overflow-wrap: break-word; border: 0px;
font-size: 21px; line-height: 1.476; margin: 0px auto 1.25em;
padding: 0px; text-align: left; max-width: 58rem; width: calc(100%
- 4rem); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family:
NonBreakingSpaceOverride, "Hoefler Text", "Noto
Serif", Garamond, "Times New Roman", serif;
font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal;
font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing:
normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none;
widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);
text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style:
initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong
style="box-sizing: inherit; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;
word-break: break-word; overflow-wrap: break-word; font-weight:
700;">morphodynamic:<span> </span></strong>A system is
morphodynamic if it tends to spontaneously increase in order. This
generally involves external perturbations, but does not involve
external design or imposition of form. Morphodynamics subsumes
many standard examples of self-organization. Morphodynamics
amplifies differences.</p>
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<p style="box-sizing: inherit; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;
word-break: break-word; overflow-wrap: break-word; border: 0px;
font-size: 21px; line-height: 1.476; margin: 0px auto 1.25em;
padding: 0px; text-align: left; max-width: 58rem; width: calc(100%
- 4rem); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family:
NonBreakingSpaceOverride, "Hoefler Text", "Noto
Serif", Garamond, "Times New Roman", serif;
font-style: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal;
font-variant-caps: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing:
normal; orphans: 2; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none;
widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;
white-space: normal; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);
text-decoration-thickness: initial; text-decoration-style:
initial; text-decoration-color: initial;"><strong
style="box-sizing: inherit; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased;
word-break: break-word; overflow-wrap: break-word; font-weight:
700;">teleodynamic:<span> </span></strong>A system is
teleodynamic if its organization becomes spontaneously
end-directed. Teleodynamic systems employ homeodynamic and
morphodynamic processes in the service of a self. Terms like
‘self-maintenance’ and ‘self-repair’ become natural and
unavoidable in teleodynamic systems.</p>
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padding: 0px; text-align: left; max-width: 58rem; width: calc(100%
- 4rem); color: rgb(0, 0, 0); font-family:
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Serif", Garamond, "Times New Roman", serif;
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